Police Board to meet on Thursday, August 18, 2016

TORONTO: The next scheduled meeting of the Toronto Police Services Board will take place on Thursday August 18, 2016 at 1:00 PM in the Auditorium, 40 College Street. Copies of the agenda are available on the Board’s website at www.tpsb.ca, from the Board office and limited copies will be available at the meeting.

The Board meeting may be viewed via LiveStream on YouTube using the following link.

Presentation Toronto Police Service Psychological Services
The Board will hear a presentation from the Service about the programs and initiatives of the Toronto Police Service Psychological Services Unit. The Psychological Services Unit’s mandate is maintenance and enhancement of psychological health and resilience of Service employees. Significant work has been done to reduce the stigma of seeking psychological support, the result of which has been a marked increase in the number of consultations, critical incident responses, and training sessions in which the psychologists are involved. The presentation will outline the variety of programs and initiatives that are offered by Psychological Services, and will demonstrate how the roles and responsibilities of the Corporate Psychologists have grown.

Toronto Police Service Open Data
The Board will consider a report from the Chief with respect to the availability of Toronto Police Service Open Data. At its meeting of April 20, 2016, the Board received a presentation from Councillor Paul Ainslie with respect to Open Data and the Board requested that the Chief provide a report to the Board with respect to improvements to the TPS website as it applies to the availability of data.

As stated in the Chief’s report, the Service supports leveraging technology to offer the public increased open access to information and tools that communities can use to improve neighbourhood safety. The Chief’s report provides a framework for the next four years which includes the Service’s commitment to developing an Open Data Strategy, launching a Public Safety Open Data Portal, and expanding the availability and awareness of open data for public safety in Toronto. The target deliverables for 2016 include:

The development of a comprehensive Open Data Strategy consistent with Open by Default best practices.

Hosting a Public Safety Open Data Competition at the Ryerson University DMZ.

Launch of Toronto Police Service Public Safety Open Data Portal.

First release of public safety data through the Open Data Portal.

Operating Budget Variance - Toronto Police Service
The Board will consider a report from the Chief regarding the operating budget variance for the Toronto Police Service for the period ending June 30, 2016. As the report notes, as at June 30, 2016, a $5.9M favourable variance is anticipated. This amount is $4.3M more favourable than reported to the Board in March 2016. It is important to note that $4.8M of this surplus is a result of one-time revenues from the reversals of liabilities and other adjustments. Details regarding these adjustments are discussed in the revenue section of the report.